Former Wisconsin women’s basketball player Tessa Towers alleged mistreatment by the women's basketball program in a TikTok posted Monday.
“My freshman year experience was completely ruined,” Towers wrote in the post, which included pictures of her during her time as a Badger.
Among the serious allegations made in the post, Towers wrote that the coach and team staff forced her to sign a release form that gave them access to Towers’ private medical records and therapy sessions. If she didn’t, Towers said she’d be kicked off the team.
The former Badger also said in the post that her coach and staff threatened to kick her off the team if she spoke about certain topics, including suicide, during these therapy sessions.
“I felt like a lab rat for my coaches and staff because they would put me on new medications every other week,” Towers wrote in the 14-slide post.
Towers also alleged general mistreatment from the coaches and staff, like excluding her from travelling with the team on away trips and being put on a “three strike rule” by the coach, unlike other players.
Towers played for the Badgers for two seasons before transferring to Ball State for the 2024-25 season.
Though not mentioned by name in the post, Towers played under current Wisconsin head coach Marisa Moseley. Moseley was named coach in 2021 and led the Badgers to an appearance in the WNIT Great 8 in the 2023-24 season. Despite postseason success, the team's win percentage under Mosley is .333.
“We are aware of comments shared online by former Badger student-athlete Tessa Towers and will be looking into this matter,” the Wisconsin athletic department said in a statement on Jan.27. “We care deeply about the physical and mental well-being of all of the student-athletes on our teams, during and after their time on campus. While we would like to share additional context around Tessa’s comments, federal privacy laws prohibit us from publicly addressing the health-related claims made on Tessa’s social media account.”
This is a developing story.
Gabriella Hartlaub is the former arts editor for The Daily Cardinal. She has also written state politics and campus news. She currently is a summer reporting intern with Raleigh News and Observer. Follow her on Twitter at @gabihartlaub.
